The Bunche Fellows Program was created in 2019 to support UCLA undergraduates dedicated to improving Black life through research. Bunche scholars engage in meaningful research while supported by an extensive network of mentors – including faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and peers.
Here, in their own words, three of Life Sciences’ Bunche scholars describe their mentored research projects and the support it takes to do what they do.
Kenneth-Alan Callahan
Expected graduation: Fall 2024
Double Major: Psychology and Labor Studies
The second of six children, entirely home-schooled by his mother, Callahan is deeply appreciative of the hard work it took to get to UCLA.
The fact that I’m here at UCLA, doing research and all the other things I’m doing, that’s a testament to how I was raised–my mother’s ability to teach me and do all that it took to get me here. I’m very proud of my upbringing and the fact that I’m here.
I want to pursue a career in workforce development and educational consultation, focusing on the development of the Black workforce. And researching issues relating to Black life will guide me toward that goal.
With my faculty mentor, Dr. Jasmine Hill, we’re trying to get hiring data from SoFi Stadium, to assess the economic impact the stadium is having on the local community, specifically the minority population. Through this research, we want to see if the stadium has a direct benefit for folks living in the local area.
After graduation, I plan to work in workforce consultation before pursuing a Ph.D. Ultimately, I aim to develop my expertise to make an impact in workforce development and education.
Naomi Hammonds
Expected graduation: 2024
Major: Psychobiology
Minors: Cognitive Science; Entrepreneurship; and
African American Studies
UCLA undergraduate student association (USAC) president Naomi Hammonds has been advocating to enhance equity and inclusion for student success at UCLA. Outside of student government, she’s been helping fellow undergraduates learn and succeed in STEM courses, as a learning assistant and TA for the Department of Life Sciences Core Education.
I really appreciate the community formed in the Bunche Fellows program. The leaders and TAs in the program really care about us, which is so important to me.
I’ve taken part in many undergraduate research programs at UCLA. I was previously an Undergraduate Research Fellowship Scholar, I’m currently a McNair Scholar, a Psychology Departmental Honors Scholar, and also a Bunche Fellow.
What stands out to me about the Bunche Fellows program is that it is the only one that caters to research on conditions of Black life. As someone hoping to be a future physician, serving marginalized populations and my own community, I wanted to focus my research on Black life, while working alongside peers with similar interests. While all of our research focuses on Black life, the topics my peers and I study are so vastly different, which is something I cherish about the program.
The Bunche Fellows program focuses on building community between the scholars, which has allowed me to make so many new connections that I believe will last outside of the year-long program.
My mentor is Courtney Thomas Tobin, an associate professor of community health sciences and the associate dean for equity, diversity, and inclusion at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
We are doing research to understand the ways that racial minority status shapes the everyday experiences and health trajectories of Black Americans. We’re now doing data analysis, utilizing the Nashville Stress and Health Study–looking at how healthcare experiences and services affect well-being for Black women. I hope to present this research during Undergraduate Research Week and use the skills I have developed here to aid in developing my thesis for McNair Scholars Program and the psychology department’s Honors Program.
Jessica Jordan
Expected graduation: 2026
Major: Pre-Human Biology and Society
Minor: African American Studies
My hope–to bring justice to the inequalities my mother faced as an educator, and to understand the cancer disparities that affected my grandmother–is what motivated me to apply to the Bunche Fellows Program. I wanted to form relationships with faculty and students, and gain the preparation I need to bring my hopes to fruition one day.
I have a unique mentorship circle. Dr. Tyrone Howard is my faculty mentor– and Dr. Simone Rahotep, Dr. Justyn Patterson, and graduate student Alexander Williams are members of my research team; they all mentor me in different ways.
My research focuses on the Council of African American Parents (CAAP) to learn what makes their volunteer community-based organization so successful in improving the educational trajectories of Black students.
This research is important because it can help increase the pipeline of Black students that go into higher education. I am doing participant recruitment and outreach. Through this research, I hope to discover if a hybrid model, with CAAP’s most successful organizational characteristics, can be created and implemented for Black students across the state of California.
What I most appreciate about the Bunche Fellows Program is the overwhelming support, both for my well-being and for my academic journey. From the people that I work with to the research project assigned to me, the Bunche Fellows Program is the key puzzle piece that has helped bring together the different parts of my life and point me towards finding my purpose.